I returned to my hometown after winning the koi lottery.

Renmin Road is the busiest road and has been for many years. In addition to cinemas, restaurants, guesthouses, there is also the largest department store!

Back in the 1970s and 1980s, the old department store was a favorite among locals. It was the town's tallest landmark, with each floor exceeding 2,000 square meters, and boasting a whopping five stories. It wasn't just a place for shopping; it was also a favorite spot for locals to relax and unwind, a place they were incredibly proud of.

At that time, the department store was the most comprehensive shopping mall in the city. The first floor typically held daily necessities, the second floor clothing, shoes, and hats, and the third floor light industrial hardware. Besides nails, hammers, and other tools, larger items like bicycles and sewing machines were also available. The fourth floor housed televisions, refrigerators, washing machines, rice cookers, water heaters, and appliances like wardrobes and beds. The fifth floor was the department store's headquarters, where the managers and accountants worked. When Xiao Taojie was little, she'd often sneak up to the department store, leaving her mother unable to find her and frightened to death. She'd often be scolded by her mother for this, which left her speechless.

Why did department store leaders arrange it this way? In fact, what's sold on each floor is determined by shipping volume. The daily necessities of life—rice, oil, salt, sauce, vinegar, and tea—are the most numerous, so the first floor is usually filled with daily necessities for the convenience of the public.

Later, after the reform and opening up, small supermarkets and convenience stores selling daily necessities gradually increased, and the daily necessities sold in department stores were gradually eliminated.

I still remember my mom often taking me to the department store in the late 1990s. That’s right, I used to take her there when she was only three or four. I fell in love with a salesman at the candy counter. He was so handsome!

Every time Xiao Taojie goes shopping in the department store with her mother, her mother always goes to the candy counter and buys her some fruit candies. For Xiao Taojie, this is the happiest moment.

In addition to being able to meet your favorite handsome big brother, the most important thing is that the hard fruit candy can be eaten for a long time. Sweets are always an irresistible favorite for girls.

The reason I fell in love with that big brother was that every time he weighed Sister Xiao Tao’s fruit candies and prepared to pack them, that handsome dream lover would touch Sister Xiao Tao’s head affectionately and then add at least two more fruit candies to Sister Xiao Tao.

This incident made Sister Tao fall in love with him immediately, and she planned to marry him when she grew up. Of course, it was not because he was handsome, but Sister Tao felt that if she married him, she would be able to eat as much fruit candy as she wanted when she grew up!

Of course, Xiao Taojie never told anyone about this dream, but when she was in elementary school, this ideal was shattered. This older brother, not knowing Xiao Taojie's feelings, didn't wait for her. Some wicked person actually introduced her to someone during those years. He got married without Xiao Taojie's consent and even gave Xiao Taojie wedding candy. At that time, Xiao Taojie felt like the sky was falling and immediately burst into tears. She didn't even have the heart to eat the wedding candy he gave her!

But although Sister Tao was sad, she still accepted the candy, but she definitely didn't eat it. The author can testify to this, because the wedding candy was digested by the author when he was a child!